Hayley ☾ (TheVillainousReader)'s Reviews > People We Meet on Vacation

3.5 STARS

This was good, this was definitely enjoyable and cute. People We Meet on Vacation has that Henry charm that I do so adore, you know, quirky characters, hilarious lines, great banter, but still.. something was missing for me. I think it started when it was announced that THE vacation would be taking place in Palm Springs.. Palm. Springs. Of everywhere in the world to go.. Palm Springs?! Living in the U.S., it's known that Palm Springs is where retired people winter, and old people go on vacation. It's not a young and happenin' spot. That was pretty disappointing, as I thought that I would be reading about far off places, chaotic train rides, delicious new foods, etc., when almost all the vacations were in the USA... *insert pout* .

Both Poppy and Alex were extremely endearing and fun characters. I seriously loved Poppy as a protag, she was so fun, with a vibrate sense of style and personality. That's one of the things I love the most about Henry's characters, they're all a bit weird and they are happy with that. It's really a great and empowering message, to love who you are, even if isn't perceived as "normal". Alex was sweet and quiet, but I loved that he had this hidden self that was just as "weird" and fun as Poppy. You just had to work to see it. I loved watching their friendship grow, and they were truly so sweet to each other. Two people who thought they couldn't be more opposite or wrong for each other, ended up being just perfect.

Though I really adored these characters, I felt constantly frustrated by the lack of communication between the two. Miscommunication is my least favorite trope (right op there with love triangles) and the whole time I wanted to scream at them to JUST TALK TO EACH OTHER. I wanted to stab myself in the eye, watching them love each other, thinking the other doesn't, date other people, suppress their emotions, FOR 12 YEARS! All of which would have been solved if they had just TALKED TO EACH OTHER!! I wish she had done something more of like.. they love each other, and T A L K, but just couldn’t be together at that time, because it wouldn't work, but they were still openly pinning for each other. I think that would have added more yearning to the story, because while I did feel the yearning at some points, I didn’t feel that deep heartsick pull I was hoping for. I also wish that as readers we had gotten to see some more chemistry / sexual tension between them, because I really thought that was at the bare minimum, along with steam in general. I think that friend-to-lovers is a hard trope to do, as it can often feel like miscommunication and drama is dragging on, which is how I felt about this one.

The writing was fabulous, I didn’t feel disjointed or confused as Henry switched between timelines and places. I do so wish there had been exploration of some form of self-development outside of the romance, like with Beach Read. There was some, but it wasn’t very satisfying.

I know it sounds like I'm hating on this, and that's not the case at all. Like I said, I really did like it, I just didn't LOVE it like I was hoping.

Short & Sweet: This was a cute and fun romance, perfect for reading by the pool, but something was missing for me. Poppy and Alex were lovely, and while I loved there moments together there was a lack of sexual tension and communication that I couldn't get over.